I'm goin' a different route today. You know the drill ... I pick a topic, jabber on about how it's stupid that ladies and gents aren't saving dough, or how it was great that a grandmother on a walker fought off a two-bit mugger. But today, I'm diggin' deeper, baby.

The word from the newsboys is that Starbucks has to fork over 100 million smackers in back tips to its baristas (the ones who make the cups of joe, jack). Supposedly, store supervisors have been dipping their fingers into the tip jar, and the apron wearers are miffed about it (which I can understand).

But skip down 10 paragraphs or so, and the boys from the press say that Starbucks is trying to revive its biz amid the sagging economy. Now, I don't think the economy is tanking by any stretch, but could it be that people are wising up? They're pinching pennies more because they realize they need to save money and quit blowing 5 on a decaf Arabian Mocha Sanani with a double shot of cream and no sugar? Maybe.

Either way, saving up ain't a bad thing to start doing. That latte money you drop each day will turn into almost 1.2 million in 40 years if you put it into a good mutual fund instead. Make it happen.